Tag Archives: White

While the Great White Way might be the ultimate ambition of many actors, it’s certainly not the only place to find work. Regional theaters across the country are hubs of actor employment. In fact, the League of Resident Theatres (LORT) contract is the second largest employment provider for Equity members behind the Production Contract, issued for Broadway and some national tour productions.
Since 1965, LORT has been the association to administer collective bargaining agreements between its member theaters and Actors’ Equity Association, the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, and United Scenic Artists. Though it began with 26 member theaters, the national organization now includes 74 houses in all of the major markets of the United States and accounted for 59,785 work weeks in the 2012–2013 season.
To join the organization a theater must be a nonprofit, IRS-approved organization, have a playing season of 12 weeks or more, conduct a three-week rehearsal period for each production, and operate under the LORT-union contracts. “LORT is regularly accepting new members when they apply and meet qualifications for membership,” said Reed Wilkerson, management associate at LORT. The LORT Executive

LONDON – White Light supplied lighting solutions and production support for The Seekers arena tour to the UK. The lighting package included a mixture of conventional and automated fixtures – including ETC Source 4 profiles and Martin Professional Mac 700s – along with power distribution, drapes, and cyclorama, all supplied by White Light. The show toured with a grandMA console for programming and show control. LD Simon Tutchener opted for an uncluttered stage, simple backdrop, and subtle colors to accompany The Seekers’ pop melodies.

Australian pop stars The Seekers have recently brought their arena tour to the UK, trusting entertainment lighting specialist White Light to supply lighting solutions and production support for the 15 date tour. The artists, who have sold more than 60 million records worldwide, returned to the UK with their Golden Jubilee Tour, marking 50 years since the group first performed in the country. The tour comes as part of a wave of increased concert touring bookings for White Light, with the company also recently supplying lighting for artists such as Barry Manilow, Johnny Mathis, Gareth Malone, Wet Wet Wet, and Paramore.

For The Seekers Golden Jubilee Tour, White Light worked with Lighting Designer Simon Tutchener who specified the show’s lighting plan. “Every artist or group has their own style, which I try to incorporate into the lighting design,” he said of his approach.

Tutchener’s career has included lighting designs for a wide variety of acts over the years including Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Queen, Take That, Mark Knopfler, and Emmylou Harris. “For The Seekers, the show is pulled back to the essentials. It’s really about showcasing the familiar pop songs that fans come to hear.”

The show’s visual design follows these principles – opting for an uncluttered stage, simple backdrop, and subtle colours to accompany The Seekers’ pop melodies. “It’s a clean look that really opens the band up to audience and helps create an intimate setting, even in an arena,” he said.

The lighting package for The Seekers included a mixture of conventional and automated fixtures – including ETC Source 4 profiles and Martin Professional Mac 700s – along with power distribution, drapes, and cyclorama all supplied by White Light. The show toured with a Grand MA console for programming and show control.

This tour continues the working relationship between Simon Tutchener and White Light with the company also supplying equipment on the recent Kenny G and George Benson tours for which Tutchener also designed the lighting. ”The White Light support on the show has been great,” said Tutchener. “From pre-rig, to rehearsals, and with each move – the tour package was prepped to a high standard and the team has been very responsive, even to last minute requests.”

The Seekers Golden Jubilee Tour travelled to cities across the UK including Cardiff, Liverpool, Brighton, Glasgow, Birmingham and Manchester before ending on high note, with the band playing to a sold out crowd at London’s Royal Albert Hall in June 2014.

DUBAI, UAE — For White Dubai, a rooftop nightspot here designed by Addmind, the concept developer of White Beirut, Procom ME helped with an entertainment technology system that includes an Avolites Expert Pro console with a Touch Wing for control.

WHITE Dubai is a large open-air venue and caters to the Middle East’s partying elite. The club, which is located above the city’s famous Meydan Racecourse, offers guests the latest in live audio-visual technology, aiming to immerse guests in visual environments that vary from event to event.

Dubai-based professional lighting, sound, video and rigging company Procom ME worked with concept designers Addmind, the creative brains behind WHITE Beirut, to design and supply the club’s impressive video and lighting package.

“Many visit WHITE Dubai to experience the distinctive live lighting, sound and video display,” explains Rami Harfouch, Business Development Manager at Procom ME. “So synchronisation, originality and avoiding repetition are challenging but crucial considerations when choosing equipment. Our decision to use the Avolites Expert Pro as the club’s in-house desk was based in part on the console’s large number of submasters. These allow the club’s resident lighting operator to create countless mixes which are deliberately orchestrated to accommodate the club’s diverse event and music styles.”

In order to cater for such a wide range of events WHITE Dubai is the proud owner of a wide arsenal of lighting equipment including various moving head fixtures, washes, beams, LED equipment, screens and lasers all of which are controlled live by the Avolites Expert Pro and Touch Wing.

“With such a large amount of elements to control, the addition of the easy-to-connect Touch Wing means the lighting operator has even faster, easier access to the different components of the mixer,” says George Germanos, Technical Manager at Procom ME. “This is particularly important for a live operated show at WHITE Dubai.”

Despite the huge feature set of the Expert Pro and Touch Wing, both pieces of equipment are designed to be lightweight, which is important for clubs where equipment is not installed and in use all year round.

“The Expert Pro and the Touch Wing are both portable,” continues Germanos. “This is a very convenient feature for clubs that need to seasonally close or relocate, like WHITE Dubai during the hot summer months.”

In addition to the technological benefits of Avolites products, Harfouch also cites Avolites’ customer support as a key component in working with the Avolites brand.

“Club managers often have no time to spare for dealing with technical matters such as lighting control troubleshoots and breakdowns,” explains Harfouch. “Avolites’ commitment to training and supporting its users makes Avolites the console of choice for club professionals. In the Middle East, Procom, the long-standing Avolites partner, offers round the clock support, even after hours. With Avolites you are guaranteed top quality machinery and a fantastic technical support team that will be reliably available in case of troubleshoots.”

As part of Procom ME’s offering as official Avolites partner in the Middle-East the company regularly organises Avolites training sessions on product and software updates providing a solid safety net for Avolites users in the region.

WHITE Dubai has already hosted the likes of Jason Derulo and Berlin DJ/Producer Thomas Gold, with many more big names scheduled for the 2014 season.

Lester Cobrin, Head of Concert Touring for White Light, worked closely with Tour Manager Sacha Bambadji, Production Manager Peter Edmonds, and Lighting Designer Seth Jackson to determine the tour’s equipment list and support requirements. This was the first time Jackson toured with White Light. “I’ve known Lester for years but had never worked with White Light before,” he said. “When we started discussing the tour with Pete Edmonds, he suggested White Light and we didn’t look back. It’s been a great experience.”

The show’s staging was designed with grandeur in mind as several layers of red and gold drapes flank the stage. “Our job was to make the show feel as big as possible while giving the audience a sense of elegance and warmth,” Jackson said. “Barry wanted to stay away from anything industrial or metallic.”

The UK tour was a take on Barry Manilow’s US touring production, and the lighting rig continued with similar fixtures and positions in order to save valuable rehearsal time. However, different venue specifications were a challenge and required a few alterations to the plans specifically for two outdoor performances at the Ipswich Town FC and Southampton Rose Bowl stadiums. Thinking ahead about fitting the rig under an outdoor roof, Jackson converted the original front truss position into a pair of cantilevered trusses off the main rig. This solution allowed him the best positioning within the given space.

The lighting wish-list was heavily based on Martin Professional equipment with 32 Mac 700 fixtures forming the base of the final lighting rig. Jackson specified another 24 Martin Mac Aura LED fixtures, along with Martin Mac Viper Profiles and Mac Viper Performance fixtures to fill out the plot and add extra dimension to the stage. ColorBlaze 72 LED battens completed the picture, giving Jackson a bright and flexible option for background lighting. White Light also supplied follow spots for the tour – Robert Juliat Lancelot units – as well as trussing, power, and data distribution.

In addition to Jackson, the lighting team for the tour included Lighting Director Jason Workman, Crew Chief Paul Makin, and lighting technicians Richard Griffin and Jamie Gorman.

As for the service from White Light, Jackson was nothing less than impressed. “The team at White Light did a great job,” he said. “The crew was efficient and dealt with changes and the shortened rehearsal and production process in stride. The team at the office was also terrific at addressing some last changes and gear shifts that were taken care of without hesitation.”

KNOXVILLE, TENN.- Headlined by country music superstar Sara Evans, the Red, White & Rock event benefited the American Red Cross. Bandit Lites’ Director of Philanthropy, Allison Burchett was the event chair this year following being on the Red White & Rock committee last year. In addition to providing all of the production for the Sara Evans performance, Bandit Lites also oversaw production of the Scripps Networks company meeting and a Women in Cable Telecommunications event, all within the same studio and within 48 hours of one another.

KNOXVILLE, TENN.- Bandit Lites continued its charitable giving with Red, White & Rock: an Evening of Music benefitting the American Red Cross. The event, which featured a performance by country music superstar Sara Evans, was held April 24 at Scripps Networks Interactive headquarters. Bandit’s Director of Philanthropy, Allison Burchett was the event chair this year following being on the Red White & Rock committee last year.

“Since it is named red, white and rock, I really wanted to step it up this year musically, and I think we nailed it,” explained Allison Burchett.

The event, whose funds all stay local to the Knoxville area, took place at a television studio at Scripps Networks Interactive, home to HGTV, DIY Network, Food Network, and the Travel channel. Lighting designer Giff Swart utilized the wide array of house lights, and then added White Spandex truss socks and White Spandex columns as accent pieces, which worked well with a huge white spandex cyc serving as the color palette.

“We love challenges,” laughed Burchett. “We had the Scripps company meeting, complete with a live broadcast to thousands of employees, then flipped the room to do the very intimate Sara Evans charity event, then flipped the room yet again for a WICT (Women in Cable Telecommunications) event the next morning, all while trying to use many of the same elements to save each of the clients as much production costs and labor/trouble as possible.”

Bandit also donated the use of its GRN Lite LED fixtures, providing an energy efficient alternative with brilliant color washes. Lighting director Gavin Lake utilized GRN battens for front and back light in addition to the GRN Pars for truss toners and highlighting the accent pieces.

“I want to thank Ken Lowe and Melissa Sykes and their extraordinary staff at Scripps for making this event happen,” said Bandit’s chair, Michael T. Strickland. “A big tip of the hat goes to Sarah Trahern, CEO of The CMA, who got the ball rolling with Sara Evans. I also want to thank Sara Evans and her incredible team for being such a pleasure to work with. Lastly, I wish to thank Allison Burchett for working so tirelessly to make this event come true!”

“Honestly, from day one Michael and Allison were both on board with Red, White & Rock,” said April Stouffer of the Red Cross. “Bandit Lites took staging, lighting and sound off our plate so we didn’t have to. The event would NOT have happened if they had not been involved. Allison managed everything from sponsors’ logos to catering to Sara’s hospitality basket and last minute items. Allison also held weekly calls to make sure all aspects of production were covered. To use Michael’s words, she is literally a wonder woman. I have known Michael for over twenty years, and Allison and I have been friends now for several years. They are both very important to me and have always been a great supporter of mine.”

As a cornerstone of White House, TN-based Blackhawk Audio’s inventory, a Meyer Sound LEO linear large-scale loudspeaker system is staying busy this spring season, currently supporting Christian hard-rock band Skillet’s tour with rappers TobyMac and Lecrae.

“LEO is perfect for what we do,” says Robert Taylor, FOH engineer for the Skillet tour. “You can feel the drums and the guitars, and the bass guitar has never sounded better.”

The standard configuration for the tour is 16 LEO-M line array loudspeakers per side, with two MICA line array loudspeakers per side used for down fill. Out fill arrays consist of up to 10 MICA loudspeakers each, and 16 1100-LFC low-frequency control elements supply low-end reinforcement.

The tour also carries four 700-HP subwoofers and four JM-1P arrayable loudspeakers for side fill. A Galileo Callisto loudspeaker management system with one Galileo 616 and four Galileo Callisto 616 array processors handles zoning, drive, and alignment.

For Taylor, who first mixed on LEO when Skillet played a festival last year, the new system has been a welcome new foundation for the band’s shows. “When we first fired up this rig and started line-checking, people were walking around with huge grins on their faces,” he recalls. “The sound is big, full, and in-your-face, but never harsh. The subs get down really low, under 40 cycles with no problem, but they stay musical while they’re doing it.”

An Avid SC48 console is chosen for both FOH and monitoring mixing. The tour is also carrying Shure UHF-R wireless microphone systems and IEMs for Skillet, with additional Sennheiser G3 systems for opening acts. Scotty Rock is the tour production manager, and Ted Daniels of Blackhawk Audio is system tech.

Jamie Nixon, director of touring and marketing for Blackhawk Audio, finds LEO to be a perfect match. “Skillet puts on a very high energy show, and the LEO system finishes the way it starts—with a full wall of sound.”

Hudson Street Sound studio co-owner Noel White is utilizing Telefunken microphones for his recording sessions as well as for live sound reinforcement, where he works as a popular drum tech and in-ear monitor mixer.

White’s mic lineup includes a matched pair of AR-51 large diaphragm condenser mics, four small diaphragm M-260 mics, and an array of dynamic microphones, including the new Telefunken DD5 drum mic package.

“In this digital age, we have to deal with a top end that can get brittle and harsh at times,” says White. “It’s all about the source and with the Telefunken M-260s everything above 5K just sounds nicer. Hi-hat, piano, acoustic guitar, you name it, they all sound great. With these mics you save a lot of time—get ‘em where you want them and you’re in business.”

In addition to his work as a drum tech, White is also responsible for top drummers’ in-ear monitor mixes, which is crucial to demanding performances with major performing artists. A drummer himself, White is especially sensitive to the needs of drummer. Good miking and good in-ear monitoring proves to be an inspiration for the drummer’s demanding role.

“Drummers and I talk about it all the time,” White continues. “The monitoring has to sound great. Even the bleed has to sound good. And with Telefunken’s dynamic drum package, it almost sounds like a lovely gate sound, because the rejection on those microphones is so good. You can just leave the mix wide open, it’s still airy and nice, and it doesn’t get in the way. You don’t even need to gate it. So by the time you turn everything on, the whole package is just really, really working. I couldn’t say enough about these mics. They make my job easier.”

White also enjoys working with a matched pair of Telefunken’s large diaphragm AR-51 condenser mics. “I use them for everything, those mics are just so warm,” he remarks. “If somebody has a brittle voice or is a bit shrill on the top end, the AR-51 takes care of it. The top end’s almost silky, they sound that great. And for the price point, instead of getting one mic, get that matched pair and then go from there.”

White describes life in the studio at Hudson Street Sound, which is located in Annapolis, MD. “Bands come here because they like to work fast and not have to worry about overdubbing so much. It’s all about the beauty of getting five people in a room together and all the magic that happens when they are like minded in creating a song. We make probably four records a month here. We’re having a lot of fun being creative and not worrying about the music industry too much, just making music.”

And a final note about Telefunken. “Everything should be invisible except the instrument and the musician, as far as I’m concerned, and that’s what happens with these mics.”

Hudson Street Sound consists of a 1,200-square-foot room with 16-foot ceilings and two iso rooms, housing a variety of vintage keyboards, drums and amps, as well as Yamaha C5 grand piano. The desk is a handmade Jim Gamble HC40 console, formerly at Fillmore West.

Hudson Street Sound studio co-owner Noel White is utilizing Telefunken microphones for his recording sessions as well as for live sound reinforcement, where he works as a popular drum tech and in-ear monitor mixer.

White’s mic lineup includes a matched pair of AR-51 large diaphragm condenser mics, four small diaphragm M-260 mics, and an array of dynamic microphones, including the new Telefunken DD5 drum mic package.

“In this digital age, we have to deal with a top end that can get brittle and harsh at times,” says White. “It’s all about the source and with the Telefunken M-260s everything above 5K just sounds nicer. Hi-hat, piano, acoustic guitar, you name it, they all sound great. With these mics you save a lot of time—get ‘em where you want them and you’re in business.”

In addition to his work as a drum tech, White is also responsible for top drummers’ in-ear monitor mixes, which is crucial to demanding performances with major performing artists. A drummer himself, White is especially sensitive to the needs of drummer. Good miking and good in-ear monitoring proves to be an inspiration for the drummer’s demanding role.

“Drummers and I talk about it all the time,” White continues. “The monitoring has to sound great. Even the bleed has to sound good. And with Telefunken’s dynamic drum package, it almost sounds like a lovely gate sound, because the rejection on those microphones is so good. You can just leave the mix wide open, it’s still airy and nice, and it doesn’t get in the way. You don’t even need to gate it. So by the time you turn everything on, the whole package is just really, really working. I couldn’t say enough about these mics. They make my job easier.”

White also enjoys working with a matched pair of Telefunken’s large diaphragm AR-51 condenser mics. “I use them for everything, those mics are just so warm,” he remarks. “If somebody has a brittle voice or is a bit shrill on the top end, the AR-51 takes care of it. The top end’s almost silky, they sound that great. And for the price point, instead of getting one mic, get that matched pair and then go from there.”

White describes life in the studio at Hudson Street Sound, which is located in Annapolis, MD. “Bands come here because they like to work fast and not have to worry about overdubbing so much. It’s all about the beauty of getting five people in a room together and all the magic that happens when they are like minded in creating a song. We make probably four records a month here. We’re having a lot of fun being creative and not worrying about the music industry too much, just making music.”

And a final note about Telefunken. “Everything should be invisible except the instrument and the musician, as far as I’m concerned, and that’s what happens with these mics.”

Hudson Street Sound consists of a 1,200-square-foot room with 16-foot ceilings and two iso rooms, housing a variety of vintage keyboards, drums and amps, as well as Yamaha C5 grand piano. The desk is a handmade Jim Gamble HC40 console, formerly at Fillmore West.

White Light, is increasingly being discovered by lighting designers working in the live music and concert touring fields. Amongst those opting to use White Light recently: lighting designer Martin Nicholas, who chose White Light to supply his rig for the UK tour of Wet Wet Wet.